Maybe we say this every election season, but the political ads seem to be more frequent, and a little more mean-spirited this time around. They’ve everywhere and they go after everything from a candidate’s policy to even his hair. It sometimes seems the more ridiculous, the better.

Republican Secretary of State hopeful Dan Severson is suggesting his website was hacked for political reasons. Severson’s campaign website crashed earlier this week. At news conference in St. Paul Friday, he said an early investigation shows it was breached by outsiders but they haven’t identified who did it.

A steady flow of people filed into Hennepin County’s election office Wednesday and waited their turn to cast their ballot in the 2014 November general election. Deputy Secretary of State Beth Frazier says the use of absentee ballots is up 65 percent this year compared to the 2010 election. “The pace is higher, is faster than it was in 2010,” Frazier said. “More people are voting absentee than they did in the last non-presidential election.”

Minnesota’s 8th Congressional District race is also shaping up to be one of the tightest contests on Election Day next week. Incumbent Democrat Rep. Rick Nolan just got a major Hollywood celebrity endorsement.

Democrats seeking to maintain control of Minnesota’s House of Representatives have a hefty cash advantage heading into Election Day. Fundraising reports Tuesday show House Democrats’ campaign arm has more than $1 million on hand.

Starkly different messages are coloring the final week of Minnesota’s race for governor. Democratic incumbent Mark Dayton released his closing campaign commercial that touts economic gains and proclaims “Minnesota is rising.” He was headed to the Iron Range later Tuesday for a party rally.

President Barack Obama is making a rare appearance on the campaign trail to help the Democratic challenger to Gov. Scott Walker in Wisconsin’s hotly contested race. Obama was scheduled to campaign Tuesday evening with Democrat Mary Burke, a former Trek Bicycles executive and state commerce secretary who is running close against Walker.

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mike McFadden is renewing his call for a travel ban from countries being ravaged by Ebola. McFadden says the fourth confirmed case of the virus in the country — a New York doctor recently tested positive — proves the U.S. hasn’t done enough to halt Ebola’s spread.

In the wide ranging interview, Dayton responds to questions about developments in Texas where a health care worker has been diagnosed with Ebola, to the controversy surrounding his support for a tax on gasoline, as well as claims by his opponent that he does not know what is in the bills he has signed.

If voters grant Gov. Mark Dayton four more years, he says he’ll stick around for all of them. Dayton told The Associated Press in an interview this month that he’s heard the rumors he’d leave office before the end of a second term and catapult running mate Tina Smith into the top job. He says it’s not true.

Election Day is about three weeks away and early voting is already proving to be more popular this year. The Secretary of State’s Office has released new numbers saying they’ve accepted more than 22,000 absentee ballots.

Republican Senate challenger Mike McFadden is turning a Minnesota Senate debate against Democratic incumbent Al Franken into an infomercial. McFadden’s campaign announced Friday it would pay to re-air their only one-on-one debate so far.

The nation’s most powerful gun rights group is targeting Minnesota Rep. Rick Nolan with a massive ad blitz the week before Election Day. The National Rifle Association has reserved $750,000 in ads starting Oct. 28, according to public filings. NRA spokeswoman Jennifer Baker confirmed the ads would focus on Minnesota’s 8th District.

Even comedian Bill Maher acknowledges his decision to try to oust Minnesota Rep. John Kline is a long shot. Maher picked the six-term Republican for his “Flip A District” contest live on his “Real Time with Bill Maher” show last month. He’s set to travel to Northfield Tuesday evening for two events to put pressure on Kline.

First lady Michelle Obama is rallying young voters in Wisconsin’s governor’s race, saying if they show up to vote Republican Gov. Scott Walker can be defeated. Obama appeared at a rally Tuesday near the University of Wisconsin campus before heading south to rally for Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn at the University of Illinois.

Republican Jeff Johnson’s campaign for governor is about to get a boost from New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. Christie, who is also chairman of the Republican Governors Association, will be in Minnesota on Oct. 13 to campaign for Johnson.

A liberal group plans to file a brief in the legal battle over Wisconsin’s voter photo identification law alleging state offices aren’t open enough to produce enough IDs for would-be voters ahead of the Nov. 4 election.